Gordon Hayward has a big decision ahead of himself after he declined his $16.7 million player option on Thursday to become an unrestricted free agent.
After making his first All-Star appearance this year, the 6-foot-8 swingman made a smart move for himself by declining his option in order to get a huge raise next season. By taking either a four-year deal worth a maximum of $127 million from the other 29 NBA teams, or a five-year deal with the Jazz worth a maximum of $180 million, Hayward is set to more than double if not triple his previous salary when he signed a four-year $63 million deal back in 2014.
The former No. 9 pick in the 2010 draft, Hayward averaged 21.9 points, shot 47 percent from the floor and nearly 40 percent from 3-point range this past year.
With those numbers, it’s no surprise that Hayward has a number of teams after him. Outside of the Jazz, the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat appear to be biggest suitors lining up to steal the All-Star player away from Salt Lake City.
Isaiah and his wife liking the idea of a Celtics dream team featuring Gordon Hayward and Paul George pic.twitter.com/pBw9T9U6Ck
— Celtics News (@CelticsNewsNBA) June 28, 2017
Hayward’s Legacy Is At Stake
Say the name John Stockton or Karl Malone to any Jazz fan and you’ll see them smile as they reminisce about the glory days.
Yes, the glory days where the Jazz dominated the Western Conference and made the franchise’s first trip to the NBA Finals in 1997. Utah followed it up with another appearance the following year, but once again came up just short against Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls.
Now if you replace Stockton and Malone with former Jazzmen Derek Fisher, Deron Williams Enes Kanter, or Carlos Boozer, you’ll get a very different take.
Vivint Smart Home Arena is home to one of the most passionate and riled-up fans bases in the entire league. One reason why Jazz fans are so loud and supportive is because the franchise has been the only professional team in Utah for a long, long time. There aren’t any NFL, NHL or MLB teams that fans can jump on in the middle of the season when things go bad. Except for the addition of Real Salt Lake, sports fans in Utah still eat, breathe and sleep Jazz basketball and are just as passionate today as they’ve ever been (see examples below).
That’s why if Hayward leaves, the outrage will be monumental because not only was the All-Star player groomed by the franchise and is the guy they have continued to build around, but the organization would get nothing in return.
Sound familiar?
In 2010, LeBron James left the Cleveland Cavaliers for the Miami Heat and the Cavs got nothing in return. After winning 61 regular season games and playing in the NBA Finals before he left, the Cavs went on to win just 19 games following James’ departure to South Beach.
After LeBron announced his decision live on national television to join the Heat, fans lined the streets to make bonfires as they burned his jersey and all kinds of memorabilia. They ripped down billboards and stripped everything they could to try and wipe away his image from the city that he spent seven years playing for.
And if Hayward decides to leave, he’ll also follow LeBron’s footsteps as havign played for seven years for the team that drafted him.
It wasn’t until James came back that the Cavs returned to glory as they won their first NBA title in 2016.
Let’s not forget about what happened to Kevin Durant either when he left Oklahoma City last year. After coming up one game short in the Western Conference Finals against the Warriors, Durant left to join Golden State which went on to win the 2017 league championship.
One sporting goods store even made headlines when it took all of Durant’s merchandise and marked it 99 percent off.
Oklahoma City store discounts Thunder Durant jerseys to 99% off https://t.co/2hoflwYAms pic.twitter.com/rRBOq9gHKS
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) July 22, 2016
I wouldn’t be surprised to see some of those things play out in Salt Lake considering all the support that fans have done to try and keep Hayward in Utah.
Conclusion
During a first-round playoff game against the Los Angeles Clippers this year, Hayward scored a career-high 40 points in Game 3, but Jazz fans had to painfully watch the franchise player sit on the bench in Game 4 due to food poisoning.
And for one Jazz fan, he wanted to do something about it. The youngster dropped off a pack of Gatorade at Hayward’s house and wrote a letter saying:
“I’m sorry you’re not feeling good, and I hope these Gatorades will help. I was going to bring you cookies but I thought you wouldn’t want those because you need to stay in shape. You balled out Game 3 and I hope you can do the same in Game 5. Best of luck!! Go Jazz!”
Another fan even created a GoFundMe campaign in a pitch to keep Hayward in Utah. The campaign easily reached its goal of $5,000 to rent a billboard and with some extra help, was able to get a number of “STAYWARD” billboards around the city.
Students even got into the mix as a local junior high class wrote a bunch of letters to Hayward, asking him to re-sign with the Jazz.
Hayward’s wife, Robyn Hayward, shared a photo of the letters on her Instagram page.
Robyn Hayward, Gordon's wife, just shared these letters on IG from a Tooele junior high class asking Hayward to stay. pic.twitter.com/53Mhxsnr9T
— Andy Larsen (@andyblarsen) June 28, 2017
Even with the all the greats of Stockton and Malone, Jazz fans have never been so nervous heading into the free agency period. This is because Hayward represents the type of player that the Jazz need. Not just because he’s an All-Star, but because of what he represents on and off the court.
They aren’t going to get the flashy players like the LeBron James, Russell Westbrook or the Kevin Durant’s of the world because they are a small market team as well as the horrible stereotype that Utah is “boring” (see “no nightlife” example).
The Jazz are already in the process of a $125 million dollar arena renovation and fans have even started getting the “Gordon Hayward haircut” around town to show even more support.
And after being one of the top teams in the West this past season, The Jazz can take the next step if Hayward comes back. But if he doesn’t, the loss will certainly sting, but for matters far worse than losing an All-Star player.
If Hayward does leave, it will show that no matter what fans did and no matter how much money the Jazz had, they’ll never be able to hold onto a star player in today’s NBA world. And with several All-Star players needed to win an NBA championship, Hayward’s decision will show whether or not the franchise will ever have a realistic opportunity to bring a title home to Salt Lake City.
